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Question of the Week: Should Daily Fantasy Sports Be Legal?

In March, we chronicled the legal battles embroiling DraftKings and FanDuel and asked whether daily fantasy sports should be considered gambling. The daily fantasy sports companies have now each agreed to pay $6 million to the New York attorney general’s office to settle false and deceptive advertising claims. AG Schneiderman’s office promptly issued a press release championing the purported victory:

Today’s settlements make it clear that no company has a right to deceive New Yorkers for its own profit. DraftKings and FanDuel will now be required to operate with greater transparency and disclosure and to permanently end the misrepresentations they made to millions of consumers. These agreements will help ensure that both companies operate, honestly and lawfully in the future.

According to the New York Times, DraftKings and FanDuel’s bottom line has suffered tremendously as a result of the legal scrutiny they have faced over the last year; reports indicate that the two companies are close to merging in order to stay financially solvent. While their joint battle with the New York Attorney General’s office may have ended in a costly settlement, it would be fools’ gold to say that they definitively lost the battle with New York regulators. At the same time that they were negotiating a settlement, New York in August became the seventh state to explicitly legalize the controversial industry this year. According to Jeremy Kudon, a lobbyist for the Fantasy Sports Trade Association, the fight is far from over, “we’re not satisfied with passing 8 bills in 6 months. We won’t rest until we pass bills in all 50 states.”

What do you think? Should Daily Fantasy Sports Be Legal? Vote below!

Should Daily Fantasy Sports Be Legal?

Yes

No

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